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I have a little problem. I'm addicted to cookbooks, food writing, recipe collecting, and cooking. I have a lot of recipes waiting for me to try them, and ideas from articles, tv, and restaurants often lead to new dishes. I started losing track of what I've done. So now I'm taking photos and writing about what I've prepared—unless it's terrible in which case I forget it ever happened.

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Wednesday, October 7, 2009

I think Donna Hay might be a food magician. Every recipe she presents is so pretty and seems so doable, and every time I make one of her dishes, it turns out great and never presents a problem. I cut several recipes from an issue of her magazine a few months ago, and when I look back through them I want to drop everything and start cooking. For instance, this salad was a simple mix of fresh spinach, crispy potato slices, and parmesan cheese. That was already a delicious mix of things, but all of that was topped with a creamy lemon dressing. It’s such a simple mix but so good all together. Kurt was thrilled with the crispness of the potatoes. He was sure they were going to become soggy once tossed with the spinach and topped with dressing. They didn’t become soggy at all. The salad really was pretty much perfect in every way.

To start, the potatoes should be thinly sliced, tossed with olive oil and celery salt, and then spread on a baking sheet. I used little yukon gold potatoes and sliced them on a Benriner. The slices were roasted for about 30 minutes total, and I turned them at the halfway point. Let the potatoes cool before combining them with spinach leaves and shredded parmesan. The creamy lemon dressing was made from sour cream, mayonnaise, and lemon juice. To keep the potatoes crisp, wait to drizzle the salad with the dressing after it’s on the plate.

I have to say: try this salad. The deliciousness to simple to prepare ratio here is unparalleled. We were grilling the night I made this. It was served as a side dish for my chicken and Kurt’s steak, and my chicken was far less interesting than this salad. Even the leftovers, in which the potatoes had finally become just a tad soggy, were a delight to have for lunch the next day. I should have made more because I wanted it for lunch again the day after that.

I just bought my first Donna Hay magazine as everyone has been talking about her lately and everything does look so winderful. This potato salad is perfect! Love the crispy potatoes and with parmesan AND that amazing sounding dressing - this could be a meal in itself!